So you know how Harry and Cressida made their first public outing together (well, they weren’t there together officially but they were at the same event and sat together) with their first public display of affection?  Well according to the Mail this was a clever way to announce that they are indeed serious, and there will be many more public outings to come to prove their love to the public, and prepare us for Duchess Cressida.  Basically the whole article is a giant PR piece made to make us like Cressida and Harry as a couple.  Yeah, I’m not sure if it really accomplished it’s job as I’m side-eyeing a lot of the quotes from “friends” and “sources”—and by side-eyeing I’m not saying I don’t believe it, just that what they say doesn’t make me like them more, it does the opposite for me actually. Anyway, I’m going to bullet point quotes (in italics to distinguish) and then give my opinion. Oh, and by the way, everything in this article is coming directly from her camp.

• “After a year of conducting a relationship in hiding, she now wants nothing more than to emerge from the shadows and become a visible presence in Harry’s life.”  —  I’m sure she does.  Homegirl wants a ring.  No but seriously, I think that’s probably a good thing that he acknowledge her and good for her for saying what she wants.  A major criticism of their relationship early on was that Harry never really took her on a proper date and seemed ashamed of her by not wanting to be seen with her in public.  Most self-respecting women wouldn’t allow a man to treat her like some secret he’s ashamed of.  I realize there could have been the criticism of “famewhoring” if they had been seen together all the time, and that may still come up (her pushing to go public because she wants a ring), but still, hiding her like he’s ashamed of her is rude.
• “Cressida – a bookish blonde from Norfolk.”  —  Bookish?  Homegirl studied dance, that’s not exactly a “bookish” major.  She may be intelligent, I don’t know, but she’s a dance graduate with a for-PR job, that doesn’t scream bookish to me.  Plus, she’s dating Harry, he’s not exactly an intellectual.
• “A friend of the couple told The Mail on Sunday: ‘Cress is bored with staying in and hiding away… She wants them to be a normal couple and to get out and enjoy their time together.’”  —  Again, I will not fault her for this.  There may be a hint of “I want that ring”, but really what girl wants to be hidden away as some trashy secret?  If he’s not willing to be seen in public with you, that’s a bad sign.  So, good for her for sticking up for that.
• Some interesting bits about Cress’s mother:  “Mary-Gaye approves deeply of the relationship… Friends are affectionately teasing her, insisting she should not miss her second opportunity [to become a Royal mother-in-law]… Cressida’s mother is doing all she can to encourage the relationship.”  —  Yeah, it’s been obvious for a while that the Mother has wanted this and been pushing for it.  She’s an aristocratic version of Carole Middleton.  Cress’s people have been behind her and pushing her this whole time, it’s just that they are most subtle about it.  They’ve learned from Kate’s missteps (Waity Katie, Wisteria Sisters, anyone?).
• “Cressie has – tellingly – been given a security pass for Kensington Palace. But despite her hippy-chic trendiness, she will not move in with Harry until their union becomes truly official. The friend said: ‘Cress won’t move in with him until things get more formal. She’s not that kind of girl. She is looking for a flat with a girlfriend and has been living with one of her sisters.  She is looking in West London but nowhere expensive like Kensington because she’s got to economise. People think she’s wealthy, but she’s got to save her pennies.’”  —  This is all kind of interesting.  Things we’ve learned: Cress lives with a sister, not in a parent-paid-for apartment of her own; she’s not wealthy and is willing to pay for her own living arrangements; she won’t move in with Harry, officially, until he puts a ring on it.  So, do we believe all this?  There have been reports saying Cress has basically been living with Harry already since she spends most nights with him at KP.  They may not be officially living together, and she may still have her own place, but really, once you’re spending every night together making it official is just a formality.  Don’t get on your high horse and claim you’re “not that kind of girl” when you’re spending almost every night together anyway.
• “Another source said: ‘What no one seems to have picked up on is that [Cressida] has been a great influence on making [Harry] a more responsible character. The Royal Family are using Harry a lot more for quite responsible things… and the fact that he has changed is partly down to his experience in Afghanistan and partly down to Cressida’s good influence.  He’s going to be used more for important things and become more of an ambassador for the Royal Family because he’s so charming, even more so than his brother, and that’s thanks to Cressida too.  Cressida is definitely the one who wears the trousers. She is very strict with him really.  She’s rather a sensible person and hates bad behaviour. She jokes “Don’t be so silly!” and “Put that drink down!” when they are in public or around her family. She doesn’t like him drinking too much or being too boisterous.’”  —  Well if this isn’t straight from Cressida’s publicist then I don’t know what is.  Good lord, there is so much BS here.  All his responsible-ness and being used by the RF over Will is all because of Cressida?  His charming personality is because of Cressida?  He was a charming person well before her.  The RF, in my opinion, put their foot down on Harry’s public partying after Vegas, which is why he’s appeared to have changed.  The RF realizes that Harry is liked by the people, much more than William, and is therefore chosen for those responsible duties over Will.  That has nothing to do with Cressida.  It was reported after Vegas that Cressida thought his Vegas BS was funny and she totally didn’t mind it.  If she hates bad behavior then that Vegas BS wouldn’t have flown.  If Cressida doesn’t like her man drinking too much or being too boisterous, then she picked the wrong man to be with.  Harry drinks like a fish, loves to party, and is a loud, outgoing person in general.  If she doesn’t like that, then what the heck is she doing with someone like that?  Also, always having to be watching your SO and saying “don’t be silly” and “put that drink down” would get soooooo annoying.  This source’s attempt to convince us how great Cressida is has backfired, at least for me.  I think they are giving her too much credit as far as Harry’s personality and RF responsibilities goes and the bits about their relationship dynamic make me like them less as a couple, and her less for it.  No one should have to be someone else’s moral compass and constant companion telling them what and what not to do, unless you’re a sober coach.  If this is how their relationship dynamic is, then I don’t think this relationship will end well.  Homegirl will get fed up with his shit and he will resent her for controlling him.  This may not be their dynamic and may be an attempt by the publicist to make her seem likable by being in control and mature and whatnot, but it does the opposite.

PS. Here’s a photo of them hugging during there outing.